Folding chair



L. H. BURLIN FOLDING CHAIR July 4, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 10, 1945' y 1950 L. H. BURLIN 2,514,309

FOLDING CHAIR Filed Dec. 10, 1945 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented July 4, 1950 FOLDING CHAIR Leslie H. Burlin, Valparaiso, Ind.,. assignor .to- Milton -L. Sturm, doing business as Milton Sturm & Company, Chicago, 111.

Application December 10, 1 945, SeriaI'No. 6333974 This invention relates to folding chairs in general and more particularly to folding chairs of the type shown in my Patent No. 2,350,0l3, issued May 30, 1944.

The folding chair of the present invention comprises a seat to which-is pivoted a front leg frame, a rear leg frame, and a. back rest. The back leg frame and the back rest are swingable to a folded position overlying, respectively, the

bottom and top of the seat. It is one'ofthe objects of the present invention to provide a folding chair of the abovementioned character wherein folding of the rear leg frame towards its folded position necessarily holds the back of the chair towards its folded position. "It is a further object of the present invention'to provide a folding chair of the above mentioned character with a simple toggle for holding t e rear leg frame in its unfoldedposition. When the rear leg frame is unfolded to its operative position the holding'toggle links pass their toggle .position just as the rear leg framereach'es'its fully unfolded-position, which is also the limiting position of the toggle. The toggle thereby holds the rear leg frame in the chair unfolded position.

It is a further object of the present-invention to provide a chair of the above-mentioned character with a pivoted front leg frame which is ewingable to a folded position overlying the chair seat and held in position by the folded.

position of the back rest andwherein the front leg frame is of a substantial width at-its base, even wider than the Width of the: base of the back rest, thereby giving great stability to the chair in its unfolded position.

It is a still further object of thepresent invention to provide a chair of the abovementioned character With an automatic spring .ratohing means for holding the front leg frame in its unfolded position.

The attainment of the above and further objects of the present invention willbeapparent from the following specification taken in .conjunction with the accompanying drawingsforming a part thereof.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is .a central longitudinal sectional view of a folded chair embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a front View of the chair of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a top view of the chair of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a bottom view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a side view of the chair of Figure 1 in its partially folded position;

5 Claims. (01. 155148) Figure 6 is a view similar to. Figure 5 showing the chair further folded;

Figures '7 and 9 are opposite side views ofv the folded chair;

Figure 8 is an end- ViEWOf the folded chair; and

Figure 10 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line Hie-H1: of Figure 3 and looking ;in the direction of thea-rrows;

Reference may now be had more particularly to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate like parts throughout. The chair of the present invention is made of wood. The

'chairconsists' of a flat seat I, a backmember 2,

a front legfram'e 3, a back legframe l, fittings for hinging these four members together, and a toggle 5'and a latch 6 for'holding the rear and front legs in their unfolded position. The seat I- consists of a'rectangular open frame the opening-of which is-overlaid by a padded cushion structure i, which cushion structure consists of aboardpad-ded on top and secured to lugs I that' are nailed orotherwise secured to the open frame ofthe seat. The seat I is notched at the back to receive apair of similar bracketsB-Al made of plywood or the'like, and" nailed or otherwise rigidly secured in the notches of the seat so asto be rigid withrespect to theseat. The

lower portion of the back 2 has a pair of. bifur- 'cated-.projectionslt--leil each of which embraces one of the brackets -8 and is" pivoted to the bracket by a dowel pini2,'the two dowel pins l 2-l2'being in alignment. Each pinfits snugly in itsassociated bracket 8 and constitutes a I'DlVOt support for the bifurcated arms l0lll of the back "2.

Theback frame 2 is suitably ornamented as by having cut-out portions l6i li. It has a central cut-out portion, oval-shaped for ornamentation,

andclosedby a padded structure ll. This may "consist of a board padded and overlaid by'uphol- 's-tering at the exposed front surface thereof. its top the back Z has a cu-t-outportion -29 formbers 2| are permanently joined together by a wooden cross member -23 Which'is'cut" out as at 24 to receivetwolinks 25-4-5 of the toggle 5, said links being pivoted to the board"2=3- as by aligned dowel pinsifi-ZB. The two'links 25 25 receive-thelower end of a link 21 between-them and are' pi-votecl thereto as by a dowel pin '21.

The upper end of the link 21 is pivoted by a dowel pin 28 to a tongue 29 that is secured to a wooden board 30 that is rigidly secured to the frame of the seat I. To that effect the upper end of the link 21 is bifurcated to receive the tongue 29. The board 30 acts as a limiting stop to limit the counter-clockwise turning of the link 21 about its pivot pin 28 to the limiting position illustrated in Figure 1. toggle pivot 21 of the links 25-21 has just passed its toggle or dead center position.

When the back leg frame 4 is in its unfolded or usable position the tops of the back legs 2! bear against the rear edge of the seat at op posite ends thereof, as may be seen from Figures 3 and 5, so that the seat acts as a stop limiting the extent of unfolding of the rear legs or of the rear leg frame. The bottom portions 10 of the back bear against the tops of the leg members 2!, as illustrated in Figure 5. This not only serves as a stop for limiting the amount of rearward tilting of the back but, furthermore, if the occupant of the seat should lean backwardly thereon and tilt the entire chair backward so that substantially the entire weight of the occupant is borne by the rear leg frame, there would be no possibility for the rear leg Y frame to collapse towards the bottom of the seat because any such collapse would be resisted by the lower portion In of the back bearing against the upper portion of the rear leg frame above the pivot 22. The chair back thus serves to prevent the collapse of the chair by the application of rearward force on the back rest even if in the unfolding of the chair the user inadvertently forgot to force the toggle 5 past its dead center position.

The front leg frame 3 consists of two legs 35-35 permanently secured together adjacent their top by a board 36. The upper parts of each leg 3535 is bifurcated to receive one arm of a substantially L-shaped bracket 3'! which is rigid with respect to the legs. The other arm of the L-shaped bracket extends into a slot formed at the front of the seat I and is pivoted to the seat as by a dowel pin 38, the dowel pins of the two brackets 31-3'! being in alignment. When the front leg frame is in its lowermost position the top of the leg frame abuts against the bottom of the seat l to limit its extent of turning in a direction clockwise as'seen in Figure 1. The latch 6 is bifurcated 'at its upper end to embrace a tongue 39 secured to the board 30 and is pivoted to the tongue 39 as by a dowel pin All. When the latch 6 is pivoted into the position of Figure I it holds the front leg 3 against counter-clockwise turning about the pivot 31.

An explanation will now be given of the manner of folding the chair. The latch 6 is first manually swung upwardly to release the front leg frame 3. The front leg frame is then swung counter-clockwise about the pins 38 as a center until the front leg frame reaches a position overlying the top of the seat I, as illustrated in Figure5. It is to be noted that the two legs 35-35 are spaced apart at their lower ends a distance slightly greater than the outside distance of the parts 18-40 of the back rest. Therefore when the front leg frame is in its folded position the legs 35 35 embrace the bottom of the back rest. Thereafter the back rest is swung downwardly about its pivots l2 i2 to a position overlying the front leg frame 3. The chair is now in the .partiallyfolded condition illustrated in Figure In that position the 6. To complete the folding operation the rear leg 4 must be folded. This leg is held in its normal position by the toggle 5 which has just slightly passed dead center. The toggle is broken by moving the knuckle or pivot 21' 0f the toggle upwardly, that is, towards the brackets B. This first results in a slight straining of the toggle so that the leg frame 4 is first pushed slightly outwardly. After the knuckle 21' of the toggle passes beyond a straight line joining the pivots 26 and 28, further upward movement of the knuckle 2'! permits or causes the rear leg frame 4 to swing about its pivot to its fully folded position. This is the position illustrated in Figures 7, 8 and 9.

' It is to be noted from Figures 7, 8 and 9 that When the chair is in its folded position the opposite surfaces thereof are as indicated in Figure 8, so that a number of such folded chairs can be stacked into a small space. Furthermore, the folded chair may be stood on the floor vertically, as illustrated in Figure 8, at which time it will be supported by a three point support consisting of the bottoms of the legs 2| of the rear leg frame and by what was formerly the top of the handle of the back. The center of gravity of the folded chair is within the confines of the three point support so that the folded chair will stand upright. When the chair is in the position of Figure 8 the seat with its integral brackets 88 is suspended vertically from the pivots 12-42 which are now at the top of the back rest and the pivots 22 which are at the top of the rear leg frame. The front leg frame extends upwardly from its pivot support 38 and is held in position by reason. of the fact that it is overlaid by the depending back rest 2, as illustrated in Figure 8. By reason of the fact that in its folded position the individual legs 3535 of the front leg frame reach on the outside of the pivoted end of the back it is possible to make a back rest without a central opening for the front leg to pass therethrough and it is possible to have a wide base front leg so that the chair in its unfolded position is supported at four widely spaced points.

In compliance with the requirements of the patent statutes I have here shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention. It is, however, to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction here shown, the same being merely illustrative of the principles of the invention.

What I consider new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A folding chair comprising a seat, a back rest and a rear leg frame pivotally connected together, the chair having a front leg frame pivoted to the front part of the seat and swingable to a folding position between the seat and the folded position of the back rest, the portion of the back rest that overlies the front part of the seat being of a width greater than and covering the subjacent portion of the front leg frame and said front leg frame including two legs spaced apart at the bottom a distance greater than the width of the back rest at the bottom thereof whereby said legs are spaced laterally outwardly of the pivoted end of'the back rest when the chair is in its folded position.

2. A folding chair comprising a seat, a back rest and a rear leg frame pivotally connected together, the frame being swingable to a folded position against the bottom side of the seat, the back rest being foldable to a position overlying the top side of the seat and substantially parallel to the folded rear leg frame, the chair having a front leg frame pivoted to the front part of the seat and swingable to a folding position between the seat and the folded position of the back rest, the portion of the back rest that overlies the front part of the seat being of a width greater than and covering the subjacent portion of the front leg frame and said front leg frame including two legs spaced apart at the bottom 9. distance greater than the width of the back rest at the bottom thereof whereby said legs are spaced laterally outwardly of the pivoted end of the back rest when the chair is in its folded position.

3. A folding chair comprising a seat, a pivoted back rest, a pivoted rear leg frame, means for releasably holding the rear leg frame in the chair unfolded position, the frame being swingable to a folded position against the bottom side of the seat, the back rest being foldable to a position overlying the top side of the seat and substantially parallel to the folded rear leg frame, the lengths of the back rest and of the rear leg frame being such that upon positioning the seat of the folded chair vertically with the back edge of the seat uppermost the back rest and the rear leg frame extend vertically and terminate below the seat and at the same level to constitute supports for the folded chair and with the center of gravity of the folded chair lying between such supports, the chair having a front leg frame pivoted to the front part of the seat and swingable to a folding position between the seat and the folded position of the back rest, the portion of the back rest that overlies the front part of the seat being of a width greater than and covering the subjacent portion of the front leg frame and said front leg frame having at the bottom thereof a pair of legs spaced apart a distance greater than the width of the back rest at the bottom thereof whereby said legs embrace the pivoted end of the back rest when the chair is in its folded position.

4. A folding chair comprising a seat, a back rest member and a rear leg frame member pivotally connected together, the members being swingable to folded positions on opposite sides of the seat, the lengths of the two members being such that upon positioning the seat of the folded chair vertically with the back edge of the seat uppermost the two members extend vertically and terminate below the seat and at the same level to constitute supports for the folded chair and with the center of gravity of the folded chair lying between such supports, the chair having a front leg frame pivoted to the front part of the seat and swingable to a folding position between the seat and the folded position of said back rest member and with the legs of the front leg frame positioned outwardly of the bottom of the back rest member, the back rest member including a back support at the longitudinal center of the back rest member and extending substantially the full height of the back rest member to the proximity of the seat.

' 5. A folding chair comprising a seat, a rear leg frame pivoted to th seat and having a part thereof bearing against the rear edge of the seat above the rear leg pivots to limit the rearward pivoting of the rear leg frame, a back rest pivoted to the seat and having a part bearing against the rear edge of the portion of the rear leg frame that bears against the rear edge of the seat whereby the back holds the rear leg frame against forward pivoting while the back is in its upright position, a rear leg holding toggle connecting the rear leg frame with the bottom of the seat for releasably holding the rear leg frame in its chair unfolded position said toggle cornprising a pair of links which pass through toggle position as the rear leg reaches its fully unfolded position, the back rest being swingable to a position overlying the top side of the seat and substantially parallel to the seat and the rear leg being swingable to a position overlying the bottom side of the seat and substantially parallel therewith, the lengths of the back rest and of the rear leg being such that upon positioning the seat of the folded chair substantially vertically with the back end thereof uppermost the back rest and the rear leg frame extend vertically and terminate below the seat and at the same level to constitute supports for the folded chair and. with the center of gravity of the folded chair lying between such supports, and said chair having a front leg frame pivoted to the front part of the seat and swingable to a folded position between the seat and the folded position of the back rest, the front leg frame including two legs spaced apart at their bottoms an amount exceeding the spacing between the pivots of the back rest, the folded chair being free of projections extending outwardly of the back and free of projections extending outwardly from the rear leg frame, and the back and rear leg frame being substantially parallel to one another in their chair folded positions to facilitate stacking of such folded chairs one upon another.

LESLIE H. BURLIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 897,737 Goodrich Sept. 1, 1908 924,396 Spoljar June 8, 1909 1,161,420 Snelling Nov. 23, 1915 1,788,832 Hamburg Jan. 13, 1931 2,247,799 Boardman July 1, 1941 2,350,013 Burlin May 30, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 467,370 France Mar. 28, 1914 

